Beowulf: A True Hero And His Journey To Glory

Beowulf: A True Hero and His Journey to Glory The poem, Beowulf, by Seamus Heaney, depicts Beowulf as a perfect hero. Beowulf is the mythical son of Edgetho and later becomes the king of the Geats. In the poem, Beowulf shows heroism in two different stages of his life, youth and in his old age. Throughout the poem, Beowulf faces three major trials of strength and leadership with Grendel, Grendel's mother, and the dragon. Throughout the novel Beowulf is a noted and respected warrior from Geatland. During Beowulf's youth, he is considered to be a great warrior, portrayed by his strength, courage, and bravery, and with age he is depicted as a wise and influential leader. There are multiple characteristics of a hero in which

Grendel had been terrorizing the Danes for twelve years and none of them could defeat Grendel with weapons During the battle with Grendel, Grendel notices Beowulf’s extraordinary strength: “He knew at once that nowhere on earth Had he met a man whose hands were harder; His mind was flooded with fear- but nothing could take his talons and himself from that tight Hard grip” (p. 33, 433-437). To proclaim his victory and triumph over evil, Beowulf hangs an arm of Grendel’s, which he savagely ripped from the beast, from the ceiling.Later, Beowulf encounters Grendel's mother, who is even more terrifying than Grendel. In the battle with Grendel’s mother there is yet another example of Beowulf’s super-human strength when Beowulf lifts a huge sword that was forged by giants and kills Grendel’s mother with it. It was said that the sword was magical so that no ordinary man would have the strength to lift it. Beowulf also boasts of his strength many times throughout the poem. For example, in his argument with Unferth, “But the truth is simple: No man swims in sea as I can, no strength is a match for mine” (p. 28, 265-267). Beowulf then goes on to tell the people in the mead-hall how he is triumphant in all encounters he